Sperlinga
Member of I Borghi più belli d'Italia
During the Sicilian Vespers of 1282 a French garrison held out here for over a year, and a Latin line in the castle recalls that only Sperlinga refused what pleased the rest of Sicily. The castle is partly cut into a huge sandstone outcrop, and rows of cave dwellings line the lanes below. Lombard settlers arrived after the Normans, and a Gallo-Italic dialect is still spoken.
Highlights
- The rock castle, partly carved into the sandstone and partly built on it
- The cave quarter of the Balzo, with dwellings dug in rows and tiers
- Sagra del Tortone, a local sweet, on 16 August outside the castle
- Contrada Capostrà, where Robert Capa took his famous photograph in 1943
Text adapted from Wikipedia (Sperlinga (IT), Sperlinga (EN)), Wikivoyage (Sperlinga (IT), Sperlinga (EN)). Available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Population: 674
Events through the year
- Feast of Saint John the Baptist
- Fiera del BestiameLivestock fair with local organic cattle and sheep products
- Dama dei CastelliCostumed parade, knights, flag-wavers and fireworks in piazza Castello
- Sagra del TortoneLocal foods and the tortone, fried bread dough, below the rock castle
Dates follow the traditional patterns in our sources: check locally before you travel.
Adapted from Wikipedia (Sperlinga), Wikivoyage (Sperlinga). Available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Local food & wine
- TortoneSweetFried bread dough dusted with cinnamon, honoured at an August festival
- Frasca telaDishPolenta of durum wheat or grass pea flour with lard and broccoli
- CassataSweet
- Extra virgin olive oilOlive oil
Adapted from Wikipedia (Sperlinga), Wikivoyage (Sperlinga). Available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where to sleep
No places to stay are mapped within 3 km.
Data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Nearby member villages
- Gangi · 14 km
- Agira · 20 km
- Geraci Siculo · 21 km
- Calascibetta · 22 km
- Troina · 22 km